A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for raising plants that facilitates increased and healthier production. The method and apparatus are uniquely situated for the commercial production of crops that have certain botanical characteristics of growth, such as vine plants. This method will allow for fully automated harvest, having had minimal manual labor expended on maintenance.
B. Description of the Prior Art
Botanical characteristics have long plagued the growing process. Many plants inhibit fully automated harvest and continue to be susceptible to attack. These adverse consequences have forced the development of remedies. The remedies associated with the prior art have been minimally successful in accomplishing the long-term goals that were desired.
To reduce the cost associated with harvesting grapes, raisins and other vine crops, growers have developed various new methods of growing the crops that reduce labor costs while providing an improved product. The conventional method of raising grapes or raisins is to grow the vines in separate parallel rows utilizing a trellis system that runs along the row producing rows of vines approximately four to six feet high. Typically, the raisin grapes are cut from the vine and placed on paper trays laying along the rows of vines. One improvement in growing raisins and other dried fruit is referred to as the dried-on-the-vine (xe2x80x9cDOVxe2x80x9d) methods. The DOV methods of growing raisins leave the grape clusters on the vines during the drying process, as opposed to laying them on the paper trays in the dried-on-the-ground method. To dry the fruit on the vine, labor crews go through the vineyard and cut the canes having fruit so that the grapes on those canes will dry to produce raisins.
The successful production of grapes and dried-on-the-vine raisins relies upon the patterns of growth of the plants and their training for improved functionality. In its natural state, the grapevine has a random and haphazard growth pattern. The trunk produces cordons, which then produces canes that extend, producing the fruit and foliage of the vine. The foliage surrounds the fruit and the density of the two elements decreases the air circulation necessary to ward off certain problems. The density of the vine also prevents the sun from penetrating to the fruit and allowing for its further development. Although direct sunlight can be harmful, causing burns on the fruit, it is important to the process of dried-on-the-vine raisins for sunlight to reach the fruit.
Training the flexible portions of the grapevines in the horizontal method does allow for the density of the plant to be spread over a greater area. This type of separation, typically the north-south division practiced today, does make the fruit more accessible to the sunlight, however the growth of the plant on the trellis system continues to shade the fruit, not allowing sufficient light to it for proper maturation.
It is the density of the grapevine that continues to plague the plant with disease, fungi, and molds. These problems flourish in dark, damp environments. The growth pattern of the grapevine creates an immense trapping device and a protection from the sun for these and other problems. These damaging factors can be devastating to crops. Allowing the sunlight to the fruit reduces the moisture that remains on and around the fruit as well as assisting in the process of drying the fruit. In areas that typically receive a late season rain, the current trellising systems do not allow for the invaluable drying effects of the sun to be used efficiently.
Vineyards can be sprayed for increased resistance to molds and parasites, however there is an advantage in marketing fruit that has not been subjected to constant spraying of pesticides. Fruit grown without pesticides have a better value. Increased air circulation is one method to improve the effectiveness of spraying done to a vineyard, allowing less spraying to be done. Decreasing the density of the plants allows for the pesticide to be more effective with fewer applications because it moves freely in the plants to cover a greater area. Unfortunately, the typical trellis system creates a dense canopy raised above the fruit, which hangs below, to simplify harvesting. The low air circulation of this method retains trapped moisture that creates the molds, fungi, and parasites which are problematic and must be addressed by spraying. As a result, it is known that increasing air circulation is advantageous to increased production, decreased loss of product and reduced spraying.
Methods of raising crops for the prevention of these problems has been faced a number of times. For instance, Sun Maid has developed a system called the South Side or Sun Maid System. The rotation of sides, north to south, has allowed for the increased growth of canes and a maturity to be attained that allows for increased production of fruit and decreased the time in which the raisins are dried. This was all accomplished by increased circulation within the plant and greater exposure of the fruit to the drying sun. The above-referenced South Side System is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,411,561 to Conley and U.S. Pat. No. 5,557,883 to Walker. This system, which utilizes a modified conventional trellis structure, trains the canes into a divided canopy with the fruiting canes primarily on one side (the south side) of the rows and renewal canes on the opposite side. Another DOV system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,144,768 to Hiyama, et al. In the Hiyama system, a modified trellis system is utilized to horizontally segregate the canes that will produce fruit in one year from the canes which are to produce fruit in the following year. Control wires are used to move the renewal canes from the current year""s growing row to the next year""s growing row. A non-DOV system is set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 3,585,756 to Johnson, which describes a method of growing grapevines where cordons are bent in a semi-circular portions and attached to an upper wire to grow fruit therefrom (i.e., spur pruning). The bending of the cordons is to facilitate shaking so as to dislodge the fruit. Replacement cordons can be grown on the lower wire to replace the fruiting canes as they become too stiff for effective shaking.
There are a number of other methods of growing grapes and raisins that take advantage of the DOV principles. Some of these methods utilize the conventional trellis system while others utilize less commonly employed trellis systems, such as an overhead trellis system. The overhead trellis systems allow the vines to be trained such that the canes grow over the trellis wires disposed between rows of upright posts that are placed along the rows of vines. The posts have one or more cross-arms that are connected to the trellis wires. One method of growing grapes and raisins on an overhead trellis system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,711,109 to Pitts. In the Pitts method, the vine plants are separated to form four cordons and trained such that two pairs of cordons grow along parallel courses but opposite each other. Canes produced by the cordons grow substantially perpendicular to the cordons toward the canes produced by an adjacent row of vines over an overhead trellis structure. This method utilizes an alternate bearing system wherein during each growing season one row is a fruiting row and the adjacent row is a renewal row. During the following season, the rows are reversed. This method of growing grapes and raisins is referred to as the quadrilateral, alternate bearing method and has been found to substantially increase production of grapes and raisins. In another method developed by Lee Simpson of Madera, Calif., the canes grow from the head of the vine and are placed across the wires such that the crop will grow in a generally vertical downward direction from the canes between the rows. This method also utilizes the alternate bearing system.
Prior trellis systems have allowed for the separation of producing and non-producing flexible portions of vine plants. The process has been to separate the producing and non-producing portions, on a trellising apparatus, with the trunk of the vine in the center and the separate portions extending on either side of the trellis over the alley. The separations are determined by which canes will be in production and which will produce on a rotational basis. This method allows for one side to be in use, allowing for the other to mature while providing increased air circulation. Examples of trellis systems for DOV raisins are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,557,883 to Walker, U.S. Pat. No. 5,337,514 to Hiyama, et al., and in an article entitled xe2x80x9cCurrent Developments in Harvest Mechanization and DOVxe2x80x9d by L. Peter Christensen in Raisin Production Manual published by the University of California in 2000. The Walker trellis is configured particularly for use with the South Side System described above. FIG. 5 of the patent shows a vertical separation of the fruiting and renewal canes that places the renewal canes in a U-shaped member above the arm having the fruiting canes. The Hiyama trellis is configured to be used with the Hiyama method described above. This trellis utilizes a pivot member to move a control wire so as to carry the canes to a position overlying the horizontal support member of the trellis structure. The xe2x80x9cCurrent Developmentsxe2x80x9d article describes an Open Cross trellis as a modified version of the Hiyama trellis. The Open Cross trellis that has the fruiting canes tied out to horizontal support members and the renewal shoots are directed upward between vertical pairs of wires or moved upward with moveable wires.
Farming is also plagued with the expense of manual labor. Although many conventional trellis systems have adapted grapevines and similar plant life for improved production, they fail to decrease the necessity for large amounts of manual labor. Making the fruit more readily accessible to the laborer decreases the amount of time that is expended in gathering the fruit at harvest, separating the flexible portions and pruning.
Several harvesting machines have been developed to harvest DOV raisins. Examples of these machines are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,355,667 to Scott, U.S. Pat. No. 6,009,696 to Walker and U.S. Pat. No. 6,012,276 to Walker. Generally, these patents describe harvesting machines that are either pulled or driven between the rows of vines with a plurality of rods or paddles extending from the side of the harvester such that the rods or paddles engage the plants to dislodge the grapes or raisins from the vines. The dislodged grapes or raisins are collected on a conveyance system and transported up and over the vines into a truck or bin trailer pulled be a tractor in the adjacent row. U.S. Pat. No. 4,480,402 to Hiyama describes a harvester that allows the grapevines to pass through the frame of the harvester so as to harvest the raisins from the lower section having the fruiting canes.
Mechanical harvesters for harvesting grapes or raisins grown on an overhead trellis system are also known. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 5,423,166 to Scott is directed to a grape and raisin harvester in the form of a trailer that utilizes a series of spinning rods fashioned into a rotating rolling brush that knocks the grapes or raisins off the plants and into one or more boxes located on the trailer platform. The harvester is pulled along the row by a tractor. The rotating rolling brush, referred to as a shaker head, is raised or lowered by the use of hydraulic cylinders linked to the shaker head. U.S. Pat. No. 6,012,276 to Walker, primarily a device for harvesting DOV raisins grown on modified conventional trellises, suggests that the harvester head can be disposed such that the beater rods extend upward for use in overhead trellis systems. However, no reference is made to how the conveying system is modified to convey the raisins over the vines.
Each of the aforementioned patents or other prior art presents a method of growing DOV fruit, a trellis apparatus and/or an apparatus for harvesting DOV fruit. However, nothing in the prior art discloses a method of growing vine plants that places the fruiting portion of the vine above and separate from the portion of the vine that is used for a following year""s crop. In addition, nothing in the prior art discloses a trellis structure or a mechanical harvester that is specially suited for harvesting fruit grown pursuant to such a method. Consequently, a need exists for a method of growing vine plants, with an associated trellis system and harvester, that is easily adapted to new or existing vineyards, provides for improved fruit quality and increased production, and reduces the costs of raising such plants.
The method of raising vine plants, vertical canopy trellis and double tunnel harvesting apparatus of the present invention solves the problems and provides the desired benefits identified above. That is to say, the present invention provides a method of raising vine plants that vertically separates the fruiting canes from the renewal canes by placing the fruiting canes in a separate zone above the renewal canes. In addition, the present invention provides a trellis system and dried fruit harvester specially configured for such method.
The conventional trellis systems, with the horizontal canopies, have not been able to increase the planting ability to the degree of the vertical canopy system of the present invention. Increased planting of grapevines is possible in vineyards using the vertical canopy trellis system because it moves the plant growth upward instead of outward. The increased planting, due to the vertical movement, also decreases the width necessary for each row. The decrease in width allows for increased planting and therefore increased production. The alternate method of cultivating, to that of standard practice today, will be achieved best by the over the row cultural practice incorporating the Greg Oire Tractor or equivalent. These types of cultural practices, where the tractor rides on top of the row, allows for denser row planting, thereby increasing production. Over the row tractoring along with the double tunnel mechanical harvesting system, herein described, is an invaluable part of the cultivating and harvesting process of dried-on-the-vine raisins.
Any spraying that the farmer does choose to do with the vertical trellis system of the present invention will be more effective because of its method of raising the flexible portions and extending them, while further separating the vulnerable fruit. In addition, the present invention will more clearly differentiate the separation by raising the producing flexible portions and pruning them at harvest to ensure those canes are not used the following season. This upward movement also improves the integrity of the trellis apparatus because it removes the strain placed on the stake in the typical horizontal arrangement. Thus, the balance of the vertical system is unmatched.
The double tunnel mechanical harvesting system is a mechanical raisin harvesting system which divides the canopy into two distinct portions, unlike its present counterparts in the wine grape industry, such as the Up Right harvester or equivalent, which employ a single tunnel that the grapevines travel through. The lower tunnel of the double tunnel mechanical harvesting system seals and protects the lower canopy, while the upper canopy is harvested. The picking rods in the upper tunnel mechanically harvests the dried-on-the-vine raisins. Since the upper tunnel is sealed from the lower canopy, virtually all the raisins from the upper canopy are harvested, minimizing crop loss, while eliminating grapes from the head of the vine to contaminate the raisin harvest. The double tunnel mechanical harvesting system will also fill the necessity of the smaller size tractor needed for increased row planting.
The advantages of the present invention to provide an improved method and apparatus for raising grapevines and similar botanicals is that the present invention is more dependable, durable, efficient and economical than present systems due to the training of the flexible portions of the plant upward along the vertical trellis apparatus to provide for increased circulation within the dense plant and the vertical segregation of the upper and lower canopies into fruiting and renewal portions. The upper canopy raises the fruit and exposes it to the sun in a manner unlike that of prior art growing methods and apparatuses The growing method and trellis apparatus of the present invention results in the production of a healthier crop of superior quality dried fruit because of the increased air circulation and exposure to the sun. In addition, the renewal canes are protected during the cultivating and harvesting procedures due to the vertical separation of those canes from the upper canopy having the fruiting canes.
Another advantage of the methods and apparatuses of the present invention is the increased efficiency and effectiveness of manual labor and the automated adaptation to cultivating and harvesting techniques, including over the row tractor cultivation and double tunnel mechanical harvesting. The methods and apparatuses of the present invention require less manual labor and only minimal training is required for that labor to perform the cultural practices necessary to grow and harvest superior quality dried-on-the-vine fruit, such as raisins. Use of the double tunnel harvester improves harvesting efficiency and minimizes product loss.
Yet another advantage of the methods and apparatuses of the present invention is the decreased area required for each plant, thus allowing for increased planting. The adaptability of the methods and apparatuses of the present invention to over the row tractor cultivation also allows for increased row planting.
Accordingly, the primary objective of the present invention is provide an improved method and apparatus for raising grapevines and similar botanicals that aids in the production of a healthier crop of superior quality dried-on-the-vine fruit at a reduced cost.
Another important object is to provide such methods and apparatuses which are advantageous to commercial farming of the production of grapevines and similar plant culture by controlling the growth of the plants with training provided by the apparatus in a more commercially successful manner with increased effectiveness and efficiency.
Yet another important object is to provide such a method and apparatus, which provides benefits to the large-scale farm and small farms alike and which is adaptable to new installations and retrofitting for use in existing vineyards.
Yet another important object is to provide such a method and apparatus which is employed to alter the random, haphazard growth patterns of the vine plants by providing an apparatus that trains the flexible portions and allows for the vertical segregation of the plants into growth zones, determined by the flexible portions that are currently producing and those that are not.
Another object is to provide such a method and apparatus that allows for the fruiting canes and first year canes to be vertically segregated from second year and renewal canes and allowing the fruit to be harvested without risk of damaging the renewal canes.
Another object is to provide such a method and apparatus that enhances the effectiveness and efficiency of manual labor and is adaptable to automated techniques.
Another object is to provide such a method and apparatus that substantially decreases the amount of manual labor necessary to maintain the plant culture.
Another object is to provide such a method and apparatus which allows for minimal training of the manual laborers with regard to the training process, pruning and harvesting.
Another object is to provide such a method and apparatus that decreases susceptibility to adverse circumstances, such as rain, mold, parasites and contaminants.
Another object is to provide such a method and apparatus that promotes the efficient harvest of dried-on-the-vine raisins.
Another object is to provide a harvesting system that allows vertical separation of canopy levels to be continued through the harvesting process.